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Mother's Day

As most of you know, tomorrow is Mother's Day. I'm not sure about you, but Mother's Day has never been a big deal in the Rosser household. I guess it's because my mom is the one who makes holidays a big deal..planning the Easter egg hunts, decorating the house for Christmas, buying the steaks for Father's day. Because this holiday is about her, she's not going to plan it. That would be dumb..it's like me going out and getting all my birthday presents and giving them to myself. It would make no sense. The more I've grown up, the more I've noticed this. And I've also realized, why does my mom just need one day to be recognized? Why does my dad?

Sitting at dinner tonight, my sisters and I jokingly asked when kid's day was. We already knew the answer.."every day is kid's day" my parents said in unison. But it's true. Although I am not a parent and won't be for several more years, I do know that once you have children, your life is put on hold. Your plans and dreams stop and you have to put your child first. Your time is no longer your time..you are feeding a baby, picking up kids from school, juggling ballet recitals and soccer games, making snacks and volunteering for the next class party, shopping for the perfect prom dress and then the perfect wedding dress. It doesn't just stop after 18 years. It's not like a mom can just send her daughter/son off to college and then return to her life she had 18 years before. It's a cycle that one signs up for for life, a bind that is forever. That is scary. It is selfless. It is what love is.

Love isn't just between a 17 year old boy and girl. Love is when lady gets to hold her baby for the very first time, and this baby allows her to be a mom. While it is forever life-changing, I don't think I know any moms that would have it any other way. They love their life even though it's hard with long hours and very little appreciation (especially in the teenage years).

The past several weeks I've been thinking about my mom. While my relationship with my mom is far from perfect and there are things we disagree and argue about, she is an incredible woman. She is the hardest, most selfless mother I've ever had (okay, I know that's corny)..I've ever known. I'm not sure who reads this blog, but if you don't know my mother you are missing out.

She grew up in the shadow of her sister who was supposedly practically perfect in every way. She graduated from high school and age 16 and went on the get her Masters in education. She taught for 12 years and quit right before she had me. She raised my sisters and I in a loving Christian home and sacrificed a lot in order to send us to a private Christian school. Growing up, my family and I made many trips to Atlanta, this was so my mom could take care of her sickly mother. When my uncle was diagnosed with cancer when I was in middle school, her trips to Atlanta became more and more frequent..and being the annoying adolescent children, my sisters and I were, we refused to go with her. She cared for my uncle and grandmother with so much love. She would go and spend hours in Wal-mart just to keep them occupied. As the time went on, I began to feel unloved and uncared for because she continually chose them over me. I didn't think it was very mother-like. I see now that she was fulfilling her duty as mom and sister, but it hurt her to leave my sisters and I behind.Driving all the way to Atlanta just to spend time in Wal-mart doesn't sound like a blast to me, but she never complained. When I started high school, my mom started nannying to make some extra money. Many think this seems like an easy job, and in some ways it is. But the more I've been home with her working, the more I see what I hard job it is. She has to keep kids of several different ages occupied. She works from 8 in the morning until almost 5. She feds these kids 2 meals and multiple snacks. She goes to thrift stores to buy new games or toys for the backyard. She has to change dirty diapers, soothe screaming babies, coax a toddler to eat her lunch, drive and pick up one from pre-school. Many say she is crazy, but she loves this job and she loves these children and if they were her own. She does all these yet still manages to have dinner on the table, do the laundry and unload the dish washer.

My mom is amazing. She makes mistakes. She yells. She has bad days. But who doesn't? It's not fair for me to expect her to be perfect. The more I've grown up, the more I learn. When I am a mom, I'm still going to be Cullen, it's not like there will be some magic potion that I drink and suddenly I become wonder woman. As I've realized this I've realized that my mom is just a human being, just like every one else on this planet.

As you read this, I hope that you think about your mom. Maybe you are best friends with her. Maybe you are no longer on speaking terms. Perhaps she has passed away. But as you think about the memories of you and your mom, I want you to do two things. One: pray for her and thank God for her. Often time, I think I forget to thank God for obvious this such as my mom. I pray for her because I know that her life isn't a walk in the park. I pray that God provides her with wisdom and understand as she raises three young adults. The second thing is to call your mom up, or in my case, just walk up stairs. And maybe it's not your mom-maybe it's a grandmother, mother-in-law, family friend-whoever it is, call her and tell her how much you appreciate her. And thank her. Thank her for all she has done. If she's anything like my mom, she will be so glad you called. A mother always wants to talk to her children.

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